Wednesday, January 28, 2009

[A FLYER about this can be downloaded at: IfAmericansKnew.org/download/gazacfv.pdf ]

The American media is reporting violence that took place along the Gaza-Israel border on January 27th as, in the words of CNN, "the first incidents of violence since last week's Mideast cease-fire," telling the public that Palestinians broke the ceasefire. [1]

The reality, however, is that Israel had already violated the cease-fire at least 7 times, the Israeli military killing 2 Palestinian civilians and injuring at least 5, at least one of them a child:

[Apartheid] Israeli forces killed a Palestinian farmer in Khuza'a east of Khan Yunis on Jan 18

[Apartheid]Israeli forces killed a Palestinian farmer east of Jabalia on Jan 19

[Apartheid] Israeli shelling set a Palestinian house on fire on Jan 22

[Apartheid] Israeli tanks fired on the border town of Al Faraheen, causing damage to homes and farms on Jan 24

This list does not include two Palestinian children who were killed on January 20th by unexploded ordnance left from Israel's 22-day assault on Gaza.[2] (Additional details about the above cease-fire breaches and citations can be found in the timeline below.)

Media Contacts: Most of the media seem to have reported this wrong. You should check your local newspaper and contact it if it reported the story incorrectly.

Below are some national contacts:Associated Press Phone: 212-621-1500 (Ask for International Desk or for Corporate Communications) Fax: 212-621-7523 General Questions and Comments: info@ap.org The AP article

The New York Times Phone: 212-556-1234 Fax: 212-556-3690 Letters to the Editor (for publication): letters@nytimes.com Write to the news editors: news-tips@nytimes.com Corrections: senioreditor@nytimes.com New York Times Contact Information by Department How to Contact New York Times Reporters and EditorsThe NYT article

Sunday, Jan 18 – After a 22-day assault on Gaza in which over 1,300 Palestinians were killed and approximately 9 [Apartheid] Israelis were killed, [Apartheid] Israel and Hamas each declared a ceasefire. Within several hours, the first breach took place, when [Apartheid] Israel killed a Palestinian civilian:

The UN reports: "One Palestinian farmer was killed on the morning of 18 January in Khuza'a east of Khan Yunis following the Israeli-declared cease-fire." [3]

Monday, Jan 19 – Once again the ceasefire was breached when [Apartheid] Israel killed another Palestinian civilian. Palestinian militants did respond, but caused no damage or injuries:

The UN reports: "On 19 January, a Palestinian farmer was killed by [Apartheid] Israeli gunfire east of Jabalia. The same day, Palestinian militants fired a number of mortars towards [Apartheid] Israel and also shot at Israeli troops still inside the Gaza Strip. No injuries or damage were reported." [4]

Thursday, Jan 22 – A Palestinian child was wounded by gunfire from [Apartheid] Israeli troops, between 4 and 7 Palestinian civilians (fishermen) were injured when they were fired upon by [Apartheid] Israel's navy, and a home was set fire by shells from the Israeli navy:

The UN reports: "Four Palestinians were injured on 22 January by a shell fired from an [Apartheid] Israeli gunboat off the Gaza coast. The same day, a house was set on fire by a shell fired from an [Apartheid] Israeli gunboat. No injuries were reported. Also on 22 January, IDF troops shot and injured a child east of Gaza City near the border." [6]

Saturday, Jan 24 – [Apartheid] Israeli tanks fired on the border town of Al Faraheen, causing damage to homes and farms. Also, Aid agencies call on Israel to finally open all crossings into Gaza:

IMEMC reports: "On Saturday, the [Apartheid] Israeli army opened fire at residents homes and farmlands located in Al Faraheen village located in the southern part of the Gaza strip. Local residents said that Israeli tanks stationed at the borders opened fire at their homes and farms; damage was reported but no injuries." [8]

Maan News reports: "A coalition of international aid agencies urged the [Apartheid] Israeli government on Saturday to open the Gaza Strip's border to allow vital goods into the territory... The agencies, including Oxfam, Save the Children, and the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO) held a news conference on Saturday at the intensive care unit of Gaza's Ash-Shifa Hospital to point up an ongoing humanitarian crisis stemming from [Apartheid] Israel's blockade." [9]

Sunday, Jan 25 – [Apartheid] Israeli F-16s flew over Gaza, causing schools, government offices, and banks to close and causing Egypt to rapidly evacuate all of its personnel from the Rafah crossing in fear that an attack was imminent.

Haaretz reports: "On Sunday [Apartheid] Israeli F-16s flew over Gaza, terrifying people who thought [Apartheid] Israel was launching a new offensive. A number of banks, government offices and schools were closed, occupants running to their homes as the [Apartheid] Israeli warplanes flew overhead." [10]

Maan News reports: "Egypt suddenly and rapidly evacuated its personnel from the Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Sunday fearing a possible [Apartheid] Israeli airstrike on the Palestinian side of the crossing, Egyptian security sources said." [11]

Violence on January 27th

What appears to have happened today is that a remote device was detonated near or under an [Apartheid] Israeli patrol near the Kissufim crossing between Gaza and [Apartheid] Israel. It is not clear on which side of the border the attack took place. One soldier was killed and three were injured.

(The New York Times is reporting this as "the first serious confrontations between Hamas and [Apartheid] Israel since each declared a tentative cease-fire 10 days ago."[12] However, there is no indication that Hamas was responsible for the bomb and seems, despite all the [Apartheid] Israeli violations, to be pushing for a cease-fire.)

The [Apartheid] Israeli military then opened fire on the Palestinian farmland nearby, killing a civilian: a 27-year-old farmer was killed by tank fire.

[Apartheid] Israel also closed the crossings into Gaza, denying the entire population (1.5 million) access to desperately needed shipments of food, medicine, and other humanitarian aid.

An [Apartheid] Israeli drone fired a missile into the city of Khan Yunis, injuring a Hamas militant on a motorcycle. There are reports that 2 Palestinian children playing nearby were also injured.

It has also been reported that [Apartheid] Israeli soldiers occupied a home near the town of Deir Al Balah.

[A FLYER about this can be downloaded at: IfAmericansKnew.org/download/gazacfv.pdf ]

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

January 27th is International Holocaust Memorial Day. This marks the anniversary of the day in 1945 that the Auschwitz death camp was liberated by Soviet troops.

The horror of what was perpetrated there is well-known.

At least 1.1m people, mainly Jews from all over Europe, were killed, the majority in the gas chambers.

After the end of World War Two Auschwitz was turned into a museum and memorial.

While the day is an auspicious day of reflection at the brutality and inaction of the conscientious, one can not but draw parallels, however far removed, to the present day concentration camp called Gaza.

Friday, January 23, 2009

I have spent the last few days looking for a good opine on the conclusion of the Gaza War - declaring it to be over and the Palestinian resistance to be victorious. I didn't find anything. Maybe its because it's too early to declare victory yet. Plus, who feels like celebrating when thousands are lying in the hospitals of Gaza waiting for their wounds and burns to heal, not knowing what lies ahead.

How will history describe the Israeli war against the Palestinians in Gaza? Another Holocaust, this time perpetrated by the descendants of the victims? An election ploy by ambitious Israeli politicians to win votes in the February 10 elections? A test range for new American weapons? Or an effort to lock in the new Obama Administration into an anti-Iranian position? An attempt to establish its military “credibility” after its disastrous defeat in the war with Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2006? Perhaps all of these…and more.

But one thing is certain. Israel has killed at least 100 Palestinians for each of its own claimed losses, a vast disproportion that has produced horror in much of the world, creating a new cause which has mobilized countless numbers of people—possibly as strong as the Vietnam war movement. It has made itself a pariah nation—save in the United States and a few other countries. Above all, it has enflamed the entire Muslim world.

I hope it did...I really hope it did...

Over the past weeks, I have gone from desperation to euphoria and everything in between, many times. One thing that finally brought me to my senses were the words of a wise teacher in one of her halaqas.

She's not a politician, simply someone looking at the big picture and explaining things in terms of Quranic promises. The words she kept repeating were that the people of Gaza are being tested under severely unjust situations because of the sins and the weak state of the entire Muslim ummah. InshaAllah the people of Gaza will have dignity and honor in this world and the next. They are truely living Islam and are willing to sacrifice this world for the next. They will get their promised reward for their patience and courage inshaAllah.

As for the rest of us, our jihad is over simpler things and we are still failing. How hard have we been trying to stop our nafs from back biting, over eating, over spending, over sleeping...? In fact, it is only a few of the Muslim ummah that are struggling against their nafs; many have either given up or never tried.

The most important thing for the Muslim ummah to do at this time is to repent from our sins, change our ways, return to the book of Allah and the teachings of His Messenger. Of course, making dua, raising awareness, contacting political leaders all helps alleviate injustice, but at the end of the day it's all down to the spiritual status of the ummah and how close our lifestyles are to the teachings of Islam.

The bombing in Gaza might be over, at least for now, but our work has just begun. The war should be a wake up call for each of us to take a deep look at our lives and make the long overdue changes. Time to get serious about our worship, our Islamic knowledge, our relationship with the Quran, and our responsibilities to our families and community.

"...Verily never will Allah change the condition of a people until they change it themselves (with their own souls)..." [Holy Quran, ar-Raad, 13:11]

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

(in context- on your Cell Phones, if you live in Arab nations, and you download the service for Quran on the phone)

With the Gaza Massacre just behind us, and talk rife about an Israeli goods boycott, we got a new company to boycott- Pelephone- news via Fox News:

Pelephone has begun offering a Koran text service that enables users to tap into verses of choice from the Muslim Holy Book at will.

In the U.S., AT&T offers a similar MyFaith application for customers to get daily Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish and and Sikh updates, prayers and verses and offers a social networking FaithBase site for connecting Christians 18 and up.

But from my understanding Pelephone will be targeting Arab countries largely and not the AT&T version which from what I read is similar to the Israeli company but not by the Israeli company.

If your like most immigrant Muslims, then AT&T is just another Zionist controlled company and you will most likely be boycotting it already.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

A couple of days ago I got an SMS from a friend about verses in the Quran which reflect exactly what the Palestinian resistance is facing today in Gaza. Verses are below, from Surah Al-Imran (Chapter 3, verses 166-175).

And what struck you on the day the two armies met was by permission of Allah that He might make evident the [true] believers.

And that He might make evident those who are hypocrites. For it was said to them, "Come, fight in the way of Allah or [at least] defend." They said, "If we had known [there would be] fighting, we would have followed you." They were nearer to disbelief that day than to faith, saying with their mouths what was not in their hearts. And Allah is most Knowing of what they conceal

Those who said about their brothers while sitting [at home], "If they had obeyed us, they would not have been killed." Say, "Then prevent death from yourselves, if you should be truthful."

And never think of those who have been killed in the cause of Allah as dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving provision,

Rejoicing in what Allah has bestowed upon them of His bounty, and they receive good tidings about those [to be martyred] after them who have not yet joined them - that there will be no fear concerning them, nor will they grieve.

They receive good tidings of favor from Allah and bounty and [of the fact] that Allah does not allow the reward of believers to be lost

Those [believers] who responded to Allah and the Messenger after injury had struck them. For those who did good among them and feared Allah is a great reward -

Those to whom hypocrites said, "Indeed, the people have gathered against you, so fear them." But it [merely] increased them in faith, and they said, "Sufficient for us is Allah , and [He is] the best Disposer of affairs."

So they returned with favor from Allah and bounty, no harm having touched them. And they pursued the pleasure of Allah , and Allah is the possessor of great bounty.

That is only Satan who frightens [you] of his supporters. So fear them not, but fear Me, if you are [indeed] believers.

True today as it was 1430 years ago and forever to come. May Allah (swt) strengthen all those who fight in His way and make us of them, ameen.

Tomorrow, Friday the 16th, has been designated a National Call in Day for Gaza. We need to get key phone lines ringing off the hook, starting tomorrow.

All we need is 15 minutes of your time.

How important is your participation? MPAC reports that <>

Can you imagine that? For every person of conscience who called in solidarity with the Palestinians, the LA Mayor's office heard from 10 people who supported the actions of the murderous state of Israel.

With the death toll now well over 1,000 and hospitals, schools and relief agency headquarters all under unprecedented military attack, 15 minutes is the LEAST we can do.

Please check out the simple instructions included below, and start calling. Then keep calling, AND please spread the word.

----------

Please Circulate Widely!

National Call-In Day for Gaza!

January 16, 2009

We designate Friday, January 16th as National Call-In Day for Gaza. Calling is quick, easy, and effective, and will take about 5-10 minutes. We need to keep the phones ringing non-stop for the duration of the day so that our message CAN NO LONGER BE IGNORED.

Contact in order of importance:

1) Call President-Elect Obama's Transition Team at 202-540-3000.

Ask that President-Elect Obama and his team call for:

1) An immediate cease-fire.

2) An end to the blockade and siege of Gaza.

3) An immediate withdrawal from Gaza.

Be firm and polite and stress the fact that over a thousand people have died and thousands have been injured in Gaza, mainly civilians. This follows months of suffering under a severe blockade that has resulted in shortages of food, fuel and basic medical supplies. When calling, mention (UN Security Council Resolution 1860 that was adopted last week which calls for an immediate ceasefire and unimpeded humanitarian access.

2) Call your Representative at 202-224-3121. Ask how they voted on House Resolution 34 which passed overwhelmingly in the House last Friday, with 390 Representatives voting yes, 5 no, and 22 present. The resolution "recognizes Israel's right to defend itself" and "reaffirms the United States' strong support for Israel."

If your Representative voted "no" or "present" on H.Res. 34, thank them and ask that they cosponsor Rep. Kucinich's upcoming resolution.

(See: http://endtheoccupation.org/downloads/KUCINI_001_xml.pdf)

If your representative voted "yes" on H.Res. 34 state your disagreement with their vote and ask them to co-sponsor the Kucinich resolution.

3) Call your Senators at 202-224-3121 and assert your disagreement with their unanimous vote on Senate Resolution 10 and ask that they introduce a resolution in the Senate that is similar to Rep. Kucinich's resolution in the House.

Please forward this to all your lists and personally contact 10 friends and urge them to make these calls to save lives in Gaza.

Change happens with numbers. That is how Obama became president and that is how we can bring a lasting peace and justice to the Palestinians. As people living in America, we control the discourse and the funding that has resulted in the present massacre in Gaza. Considering the fundamental role that we play in this political situation, our participation is the least we can do.

"The death of children is the death of innocence, and the death of innocence is the downfall of humanity."

You are thinking Muslamics people have lost it? Right, but its a legitimate claim! The Israeli's used it to describe what they experience everyday and the analogy took on like a California wildfire. Right, rockets from TJ....Well Randall Kunh had a similar analogy to share with us all in a piece he wrote for Washington Times, my favorite quote:

Maybe some day soon, common sense will prevail and no corpus of misleading analogies abut Tijuana or the crazy guy across the hall who wants to murder your daughter will be able to obscure the truth. And at that moment, in a country whose people shouted We Shall Overcome, Ich bin ein Berliner, End Apartheid, Free Tibet and Save Darfur, we will all join together and shout "Free Gaza. Free Palestine." And because we are Americans, the world will take notice and they will be free, and perhaps peace will prevail for all the residents of the Holy Land.

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Several days into Israel's Gaza assault, Richard Ramsey, the managing director of a British telecom company, sent an e-mail to the Israeli tech firm MobileMax. "As a result of the Israeli government action in the last few days we will no longer be in a position to consider doing business with yourself or any other Israeli company."

When contacted by The Nation, Ramsey said his decision wasn't political. "We can't afford to lose any of our clients, so it was purely commercially defensive."

It was this kind of cold business calculation that led many companies to pull out of South Africa two decades ago. And it's precisely the kind of calculation that is our most realistic hope of bringing justice, so long denied, to Palestine.

By the way, it seems the boycott of American goods and services is picking up again in the Arab world (no surprise). There are all these messages about stores like McDonalds and Burger King donating a portion of their revenue to the Apartheid State. I am usually quick to dismiss these as myths. In case I'm wrong, does anybody know of a US (or other) franchise which has publicly announced support for the Apartheid state (financial or otherwise) during this war?

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Included below is a translation of the recent fatwa that was signed by 40 Scholars in Egypt. Although a fatwa is not binding upon the masses, I thought it would be good to reflect on the idea of Jihaad at this time. After I finished reading, I couldn't help but think about the condition of the Muslim ummah around the world at this point in time. Are we ready for Jihad?

Jihaad [struggling and striving for the sake of Allah] is a part of Islam, and often times in the America we spend more time on the defensive rather then thinking about this concept in a holistic sense. Jihaad includes an internal aspect, which we struggle with our personal desires, as well as an external aspect where we struggle against the oppressor.

By: A group of scholars and callers in Egypt

1/4/2009

At-Tibyān Publications

All praise is due to Allāh, Lord of the Worlds. There is no deity worthy of worship but Him, the All-Powerful, the Able, the All-Mighty, the Triumphant, the One, the Subduer. Nothing escapes him on the Earth or in the heavens. And may the Blessings and Peace [of Allāh] be upon our Prophet Muhammad, the slave of Allāh and His Messenger, the Imām of the Mujāhidīn and the commander of the conquerers.

Indeed the events occurring now on one of the lands of Islām and the Muslims, in the land of Gaza in Palestine the Resistant, from unconcealed transgression and massacres, are spurned by all values and morals, and are rejected by all humanity. [These events] forced those of us who have signed this proclamation – a group of the scholars and callers of our beloved Egypt – to clarify our opinion so as to have an excuse in front of Allāh 'Azza Wa Jall, and in clarification to the people.

Firstly: Indeed the blessed land of Palestine, which Allāh has blessed in His Book, is an Islāmic land in every sense of the word. Within it was the first of the two Qiblahs, and in it is the second of the two Masjids and the third of the holy sanctuaries, and it was the place of our Messenger's, صلى الله عليه و سلم, ascension. Therefore, it is not permissible for anyone, whoever he may be, to give up this land, or even a part of it, to the non-Muslims.

Glorified (and Exalted) is He (Allāh) [above all that (evil) they associate with Him] Who took His slave (Muhammad) for a journey by night from Al-Masjid-al-Harām (at Makkah) to Al-Masjid-al-Aqsā (in Jerusalem), the neighborhood whereof We have blessed, in order that We might show him (Muhammad) of Our Ayāt Verily, He is the All-Hearer, the All-SeerAl-Isrā'; 1

Secondly: The global zionist movement manifested in the state of Israel, they are the people strongest in enmity towards the believers throughout their history. Their enmity to Allāh and His Prophets and Messengers is overflowing, and they are behind every evil, and behind every corruption. They nullified the covenants and they made the prohibited permissible, and betrayed and made an example of everyone who dealt with them and came close to them. And they usurped the land of Palestine at the expense of its humble people and Muslim inhabitants, with continuous oppressive, transgressive support from the west.

Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-MushrikūnAl-Mā'idah; 82

And these Israeli zionists are an occupying gang who usurped the land of Palestine, but the rights must be returned to its people no matter the length of the time that has passed, and we will not be pleased with and we will not accept this tyrannical occupation of this Holy Land by this gang of zionists.

Third: Al-Jihād in the Path of Allāh and armed resistance is the strategic option for the return of the usurped land and the plundered rights. The zionists do not know the language of dialogue and do not understand the meaning of peace. Their Manhaj (methodology) is that of killing and causing corruption upon the earth. Therefore, we believe and we are certain that the only language they understand is the language of Jihād, by all of its ways. And Jihād should not be stopped except after the expulsion of the last Zionist from the land of Palestine.

And make ready against them all you can of power, including steeds of war (tanks, planes, missiles, artillery) to threaten the enemy of Allāh and your enemyAl-Anfāl; 60

Fourthly: Those who took the path of Jihād and resistance as their path, and carried their souls upon their palms and put forth their martyrs and their wealth and sacrificed what is expensive and dear to them as a price in order to free this land, despite the military apparatus that is possessed by the enemy and despite their criminal offensive power that makes its blind hatred towards everything that is Muslim known, these people are from the Victorious Party by the Permission of Allāh, and they are worthy of support and assistance and aid.

Fifthly: And here we remind and we assert that the role of the masses is in aiding this cause, and their Shar'ī obligation that our Religion has mandated for us is Jihād in the Path of Allāh in every sense of the word, and offering financial aid and boycotting Israel in every possible way, economically, politically, culturally on an equal level, as well as boycotting those who prop up Israel in the East or the West, and rejecting normalization [of relations] in every way. And we assert the prohibition of interacting with the zionist entities and those who prop them up in any of the ways of interaction and normalization.

So do not become weak (against your enemy), nor be sad, and you will be superior (in victory) if you are indeed (true) believers. If a wound (and killing) has touched you, be sure a similar wound (and killing) has touched the others. And so are the days (good and not so good), We give to men by turns, that Allāh may test those who believe, and that He may take martyrs from among you. And Allāh likes not the Thālimūn (wrong-doers)Āl-'Imrān; 139-140

And it is upon the entire Ummah to unify and gather like the heart of one man, everyone undertaking what is obligatory upon him, and leaving all forms of hated difference which hinders Jihād in the Path of Allāh.

And hold fast, all of you together, to the Rope of Allāh (i.e. this Qur'ān), and be not divided among yourselves, and remember Allāh's Favor on you, for you were enemies one to another but He joined your hearts together, so that, by His Grace, you became brethrenĀl-'Imrān; 103

This is a proclamation to the people, and it is upon everyone to shoulder the responsibility. And as for the honored Mujāhidīn in Palestine's Gaza, and in any area of the usurped Muslim lands, then we say to them, indeed you have paid your blood as a tax of faith and honor and nobility, so be steadfast and persevere and have patience, and Allāh is with you and will not make your actions in vain.

Those (i.e. believers) unto whom the people (hypocrites) said, "Verily, the people (pagans) have gathered against you (a great army), therefore, fear them." But it (only) increased them in Faith, and they said: "Allāh (Alone) is Sufficient for us, and He is the Best Disposer of affairs (for us)Āl-'Imrān; 173

Friday, January 9, 2009

Never pass up a chance to rub salt in open wounds. Keep on building settlements in occupied territory. Stuff like that. Ya know?

Undermine and isolate potential interlocutors who might be able to represent the Palestinians. First, destroy Palestinian Authority infrastructure and withhold funds and supplies needed for critical social services, thus helping to push ordinary Palestinians into the arms of Hamas, with its ample social services programs funded by Iran and private Arab donors. Then, when Hamas wins Palestinian elections, isolate Gaza and undermine Hamas.

Be trigger happy. A recent statistical analysis by three academics (one at MIT, one at Harvard and one from Tel Aviv University) found that an overwhelming majority of lulls in violence since 2000 (when the second intifada began) ended when Israelis killed Palestinians, sparking renewed tit-for-tat violence. According to Nancy Kanwisher, Johannes Haushofer and Anat Biletzki, "79% of all conflict pauses were interrupted when Israel killed a Palestinian, while only 8% were interrupted by Palestinian attacks." The pattern was "more pronounced for longer conflict pauses. ... Of the 25 periods of nonviolence lasting longer than a week, Israel unilaterally interrupted 24, or 96%." Always give war a chance!

Carry out intense aerial attacks on densely populated civilian areas. Civilians in the Gaza Strip are fenced in -- the sea on the west and heavily guarded borders on the land perimeter. As Mads Gilbert, a Norwegian surgeon working at a Gaza hospital, put it, the aerial bombardment of Gaza is like "bombing 1 1/2 million people in a cage."

Heavy civilian casualties are inevitable -- like those from the Israeli strikes on Tuesday that damaged three United Nations schools, killing at least 48.

Complain about unfair media coverage, but don't let any Israeli or foreign journalists into Gaza (in defiance of the Israeli Supreme Court, which has ordered that a limited number of journalists must be allowed in). That way, nearly all news coming out of Gaza will come from Palestinian journalists.

Don't have a plan. Start bombing Gaza to eliminate the Hamas capacity to fire rockets and mortars at Israel. Realize, as the Palestinian death toll approaches 700, that Hamas rocket attacks on Israel are still ongoing, there's no obvious military solution short of leveling Gaza, international dismay is rising, and you don't really have a game plan. Continue to play it by ear -- it's just a war.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

"In a fight like this where the odds and decks are stacked against Israel, thank God for...." Jack Weiss. He really doesn't care about humanity and is blind to any suffering besides Zionist, doesn't deserve comment, but the Mayor...is there any hope?

Talk about blind acceptance. I mean who the hell is Mayor Vivaisraeli? Talk about selling out the oppressed for top dollar. This isnt the first time he's been such a blind jack arse to the zionist cause. During the Lebanese war, he supported Israel's "self defense" (destruction of democracy and death and murder of innocent people by Israel) and then flew over to Jerusalem with the the pandering in the name of tolerance Rabbi Heir of the Simon Wiesenthal Center to celebrate the desecration of the oldest Muslim cemetery.

Mayor Vivaisraeli is not a friend to Muslims or the oppressed. I wish friends in the LABOR movement will dump some sense on his cheating rear end.

Considering that this whole thing started becuase Israel broke the ceasefire, refused to work with Hamas, even though they were willing to re-evaluate their- no israel policy, and even CNN finally gets the facts straight, yet the Mayor VivaIsraeli wants to continue to divide and destroy chances of mutual respect and coexistence for the people of the city of Los Angeles just to gain political brownie points! Shame on you Mayor! Your behavior is disgraceful.

Monday, January 5, 2009

[Anarchists Against the Wall about to stage a die-in outside an air force base in Israel. The sign reads "The blood of children is on your hands"]

From Indonesia to the US, the protests against the criminal war in Gaza have not stopped over the past 10 days. Maybe it is the magnitude of brutality and injustice that is driving people to the streets. They remind me of the marches before the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Hopefully, the Gaza marches will have a more significant effect.

Out of the hundreds of marches, three have particularly caught my attention (for different reasons): those in UK, France and Israel.

This comment in the The Guardian captures some of my thoughts on the UK protests. It is great to see huge protests in London supported by political and entertainment celebrities; however, the photos and news footage I've seen makes it obvious that the vast majority of the crowd is Muslim. What's wrong with that? That means that either 1) the message is not getting out to the non-Muslim public and/or 2) they do not feel comfortable taking part in the demonstrations. Excerpts from Comment below:

My quibble is more with some aspects of the demo itself. Wandering around and taking pictures I didn't hear anything antisemitic, which was a relief. A bunch of "rudeboys" with their faces covered by bandanas performed like monkeys for the television cameras as usual. The atmosphere was generally light, even while charged with emotion. Not many cheered when George Galloway was introduced (thank God for small mercies).

I had an uncomfortable feeling I couldn't articulate until I was leaving via Charing Cross tube. It was crowded inside as we made our way to the trains. Two girls started to chant "We are Hamas" (I'm not, thank you very much) but were almost immediately drowned out by "Free free Palestine" before I had the chance to get annoyed. And then it came: Allah hu Akbar, Allah hu Akbar on repeat. Our fellow white travellers said little.

And therein lies my problem. I came to the march to express solidarity with Palestinians and express my anger at Israel's bombings. I didn't come to express solidarity with Hamas, nor want to come to a religious march. If I wanted to hear "God is Great" I could have gone to a mosque or a gurudwara. But I didn't. People can say what they want – freedom of speech etc – but I think this encapsulates a broader problem.

British Muslim organisations have broadly failed to capitalise on the widespread support for Palestinians in the UK, compared to the United States, by constantly bringing religion into a dispute essentially about land.

A similar issue comes up in France, except it is compounded by the heavily biased anti-Muslim media coverage there. My thrill at the large number of people marching turned into disappointment and fury when I saw the images of store fronts burning. However, this website offers some clarification and insight(excerpt of translation below courtesy of A.S.):

The media has been careful to hide photos, preferring to linger on the schemes of certain thugs that have nothing to do with the peaceful approach of the thousands of protesters present and who contributed to the success of this historic demonstration.

A similar media bias exists in Israel; however, this is not stopping thousands of Arab and Jewish citizens from taking to the streets (and the air force bases) to demand an end to the insane war. Even left-wing Zionist groups have joined the calls for a cease fire (as noted here) which is a significant change of events (historically, Zionist parties from extreme right to extreme left rally around the army in times of war).

As massive as the Israeli protests were, they were barely covered in Israeli media, as Rela Mazali (member of JVP) notes:

To read the English internet version of Haaretz of January 4th, you wouldn't know that some ten thousand marchers had protested their government's policy and attack on Gaza the night before in Tel Aviv or that earlier that day, many tens of thousands (some estimates have quoted 70 to 100 thousand), Jews and Palestinian Arab citizens of Israel, marched their protest through the Arab town of Sakhnin in the Galilee. They're not part of the reality constructed by Haaretz's English website. On January 4th, one headline—topping an item picked up from Associated Press read: "Protesters across Europe urge Israel to end attacks on Gaza Strip" with no mention of domestic protests. Haaretz, mind you, is the newspaper often cited as a central example of Israel's relatively critical and truthful media.

Al Jazeera English did a much better job at covering the protest - article here.More on protests in Israel here, here and here. Of course, Palestinian citizens of 'Israel' continue to be harassed and intimidated, but they continue to ensure their voices are heard loud and clear. More here

I do have some thoughts on the US protests (watching and reading from a far); however, I'll wait to hear yours first...

Due to growing length of post, further comments and articles will be posted seperately. Also, please check out Gaza Siege (RSS Scroll on right hand side)for latest news and analysis on the war. Please keep our brothers and sister in your dua...

A. offered his own take on the situation: "I keep the children away from the windows because the F-16s are in the air; I forbid them to play below because it's dangerous. They're bombing us from the sea and from the east, they're bombing us from the air. When the telephone works, people tell us about relatives or friends who were killed. My wife cries all the time. At night she hugs the children and cries. It's cold and the windows are open; there's fire and smoke in open areas; at home there's no water, no electricity, no heating gas. And you [the Israelis] say there's no humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Tell me, are you normal?"

For example, the newspaper's [The Washington Post] lead article on Tuesday, which was published above the mothers' photographs, quotes Israeli military and civilian sources nine times before quoting a single Palestinian. The first seven paragraphs explain Israel's military strategy. The ninth paragraph describes the anxiety among Israelis, spending evenings in bomb shelters. Ordinary Palestinians, who generally have no access to bomb shelters, do not make an appearance until the 23rd paragraph.

[The UK press is considerably more objective - I'm impressed by The Guardian's coverage of the war]

Obama has identified his daughters repeatedly with Israeli children, while never having uttered a word about the thousands – thousands – of Palestinian and Lebanese children killed and permanently maimed by Israeli attacks just since 2006. This allegedly post-racial president appears fully invested in the racist worldview that considers Arab lives to be worth less than those of Israelis and in which Arabs are always "terrorists".

The problem is much wider than Obama: American liberals in general see no contradiction in espousing positions supporting Israel that they would deem extremist and racist in any other context.

Despite the predictable accusation of anti-Semitism and what have you, it is time to associate in the public mind the Zionist ideology with the by now familiar historical landmarks of the land: the ethnic cleansing of 1948, the oppression of the Palestinians in Israel during the days of the military rule, the brutal occupation of the West Bank and now the massacre of Gaza. Very much as the Apartheid ideology explained the oppressive policies of the South African government, this ideology -- in its most consensual and simplistic variety -- allowed all the Israeli governments in the past and the present to dehumanize the Palestinians wherever they are and strive to destroy them.

[Probably too difficult for the US public to grasp, but it's about time the rest of the world saw, or were shown, the big picture and how it all comes down to the racist, destructive political ideology called Zionism]

A new information directorate was established to influence the media, with some success. And when the attack began just over a week ago, a tide of diplomats, lobby groups, bloggers and other supporters of Israel were unleashed to hammer home a handful of carefully crafted core messages intended to ensure that Israel was seen as the victim, even as its bombardment killed more than 430 Palestinians over the past week, at least a third of them civilians or policemen.

[It is imperative that the global movement in support of Gaza and Palestine has clear demands: immediate cease-fire and end of seige]

While the editors [of the NYT] assign the blame conveniently and squarely on Hamas, this nevertheless remains a factually erroneous statement contradicting reporting by Israeli newspapers (in both Hebrew and English), the British press, Amnesty International and – perhaps curiously enough – November 2008 reporting by the NYT itself.

The time has come to create an international, global non-violent resistance movement against the violent, extremist policies of the State of Israel. We must mobilize world opinion by keeping the Palestinian issue in the public eye through ongoing, scrupulously accurate information ; by writing articles, organizing conferences and demonstrations in support of the Palestinians, and by improving synergy between the efforts and activities of existing organizations. We know this much : the Palestinians may bend, but they will not break. We must continue to defend their legitimate rights on the ground. Around the world, we must support their resistance in a determined, peaceful way. Israel, for all its awesome firepower, has not won the conflict...

[Don't you love it when a Muslim scholar comes out and strongly defends the truth yet speaks in a rational, realistic, action-oriented language? Dr. Tariq Ramadan just laid out the action plan - thank you!.]

Last night I was on PressTV.com, along with others who were on the Dignity, and we debated a representative from WINEP, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. I reminded the audience that the Palestinians don't have nuclear weapons, depleted uranium munitions, white phosphorous, or F-16s, but the Israelis do. The facts, however, tend to get garbled after being processed by the "Grand Wurlitzer" organ of state-sponsored disinformation utilizing the world's press.

Not one of the nearly 450 presidents of American colleges and universities who prominently denounced an effort by British academics to boycott Israeli universities in September 2007 have raised their voice in opposition to Israel’s bombardment of the Islamic University of Gaza earlier this week.

But he then moves quickly to report to you about the horrors of Hamas bombing of Israel, and at one point I almost expected him to report that Hamas fighter jets were bombing the Israeli coast. But the premise of this article—and all other articles and editorials in the New York Times—is quite simple and Arabs have gotten to know it full well: that the Palestinians are inferior to Israeli Jews, and their sufferings are never equal to that of Israelis.

Just 20 minutes before midnight, here in al-Maghazi refugee camp, as I write this report, two bombs have hit my town. In Arabic, people exchange the New Year's greeting, "Kul am wa antum bi khair" (May you be safe and well every year). From Gaza I say, "Kul qasif wa antum bi khair." May you be safe after every bombing.

The gradual process of ethnic cleansing in the occupied Palestinian territories is accelerating, and with it so is the moral culpability of Israel and the supporters of its policies in the United States. More and more people from the mainstream of Israeli politics are voicing alarm.

[Even supporters of the Israeli society are realizing that these insane military attacks harm Israel's image and future more than anything else]

Diplomatic pressure on Israel to end its relentless military assault on Gaza gathered pace last night as its key ally Washington joined European Union foreign ministers in calling for an immediate ceasefire.

Now after hundreds dead and counting, it is Israel who refuses to re-enter talks over a cease-fire. They are not intent on securing peace as they claim; it is more and more clear that they are seeking regime change - whatever the cost.

But watching the news shows, you'd think that history began yesterday, that a bunch of bearded anti-Semitic Islamist lunatics suddenly popped up in the slums of Gaza – a rubbish dump of destitute people of no origin – and began firing missiles into peace-loving, democratic Israel, only to meet with the righteous vengeance of the Israeli air force. The fact that the five sisters killed in Jabalya camp had grandparents who came from the very land whose more recent owners have now bombed them to death simply does not appear in the story.

Information received from Physicians for Human Rights indicates operations are being performed without anesthesia, and surgical gloves, gauze, sterile equipment and oxygen have run out. Needles, stretchers and hospital beds are already in short supply.

The second day was more painful than the first since we then understood that this all wasn't some nightmare. After I woke up, I headed directly to the hospital to document the cruel reality. As the casualties kept mounting -- women, children and men alike -- it was crystal clear that the whole of the people of Gaza were being targeted.

Al Mezan's initial monitoring indicates that at least 257 people have been killed in the IOF's strikes in the last 24 hours. Of those, the vast majority are non-combatants and civilians; including 20 children, nine women and 60 civilians. The majority of the rest of the casualties are members of the civilian police who were inside their stations or undertaking training.

Entering al-Aqsa [hospital] was overwhelming -- pure pandemonium, charged with grief, horror, distress and shock. Limp, blood-covered and burnt bodies streamed by us on rickety stretchers. Before the morgue, tens of shouting relatives crammed up to its open double doors.

The number of deaths resulting from these attacks indicates a willful targeting of the civilian police forces in these locations and a clear violation of the prohibition against willful killings. Willful killings are a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention under Article 147 and therefore, a war crime.

What the media never question is Israel's idea of a truce. It is very simple. Under an Israeli-style truce, Palestinians have the right to remain silent while Israel starves them, kills them and continues to violently colonize their land.Palestinians everywhere are asking for solidarity, real solidarity, in the form of sustained, determined political action.

Thursday, January 1, 2009

This article by Br. Dawud Walid ties in lessons from the sacrifice Imam Hussain (a.s.) made with the plight of the oppressed all over the world.

"Al-Husayn (RA) refusal of allegiance to Yazid was not that he was jockeying to be the khalifah though he had more right to hold such a trust; his refusal was a direct lesson that truth should never give allegiance to falsehood, that the just should be diametrically opposed to the unjust."

Imam Hussain (a.s.) stands as an eternal icon for those pursuing a moral and ethical code to live by no matter how great or desperate the challenges may be. He proved that achievement is not found in a band of warriors or sophisticated artillery, instead one's life can be a catalyst for success. His sacrifice is an everlasting example of justice and peace irrespective of national borders, ethnicity, religion, gender, and socio-economic and educational levels.

"As we pray for relief for the people of Gaza during Muharram, remembering the principle that Muslims must always stand for the truth and justice and resist falsehood and oppression even when committed by Muslims is a major component to the key of our success in this world and in the latter-life. If Al-Husayn (RA) were alive today, I believe that he would not only pray and speak out against the current injustices in Gaza, but also against the injustices perpetrated by leaders in Muslim lands. Al-Husayn (RA) would cry for the approximately 300,000 Muslims killed by other Muslims in Darfur, he would weep for the approximate deaths of 3 million people in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, who are 10% Muslim, within the past decade, and he would be upset with too many American Muslims, who live in the land of abundance and have large amounts of monetary resources, that turn a blind eye to the suffering of the poor and oppressed in many urban areas such as Detroit."

Muslamics?

The term Muslamics is a cross between Muslims and Islamics, and makes light of the many erroneous labels placed upon Muslims.

As Muslims living in America, we are part of a daily struggle to define ourselves and forge new identities, at a time when our community, and specifically Muslim activists, are in the limelight. Part of this struggle is to reclaim our language.

We are proud to be Muslims and we believe it is part of our duty to convey to others who we are and what we stand for. Therefore, we will take the name Muslamics - originally used as a derogatory term against Muslims - and expose the ignorance behind it, as well as give it a new and positive meaning.